Ireland v Commission, Apple Sales International and Apple Operations Europe v Commission

The General Court of the European Union has annulled the decision of the European Commission that Ireland granted unlawful State aid to Apple Sales International (ASI) and Apple Operations Europe (AOE) in two tax rulings issued by Irish Revenue on 29 January 1991 and 23 May 2007.  The contested tax rulings endorsed the methods used by ASI and AOE to determine their chargeable profits in Ireland, relating to the trading activity of their respective Irish branches.

The Commission also declared the aid incompatible with the internal market and demanded recovery of the aid, calculating that it amounted to €13 billion in unlawful tax advantages.  

The General Court ruled that the Commission did not succeed in showing to the requisite legal standard that there was an advantage for the purpose of Article 107(1) TFEU.

The Court’s press release can be found here.

Catherine Donnelly acted for Ireland.